The Educational Aspects of Polish Student Satellite PW-Sat2
- Paper number
IAC-15,E1,3,11,x31537
- Author
Ms. Inna Uwarowa, Students Space Association, Poland
- Coauthor
Prof. Piotr Wolanski, Polish Academy of Sciences, Poland
- Year
2015
- Abstract
PW-Sat2 is the second student satellite project of the Students’ Space Association from Warsaw University of Technology. Our team is now made up of roughly 50 members from different faculties, with a range of individual experience; some who have been with the Association for 2 years or more, while others are fresh members that have joined recently. We are depending on structured and efficient cooperation not just internally, but also across departments and learning institutions. Our goal is not only to build another satellite. We want to use conclusions derived from our previous student satellite project in order to avoid mistakes we’ve made before. One major concern is not only how to ensure that our members become well-informed in their fields of responsibility, but also how to sustain and preserve the knowledge acquired by team members before they finish their involvement with the project and graduate from the University. This means we must keep a continuous recruitment process, and often have to evaluate the impact of our decisions. The members of our team use modern techniques of work organization, and undergo organized training from domains which are necessary to master in order to build a spacecraft. We arrange lectures for our less experienced members, covering a wide spectrum of background material needed – carried out either by some of the experienced members, or by invited guest lecturers from selected companies or university professors. Training in the use of important software is also provided for members, often provided by our postgrad alumni who now hold real-world positions within space companies, and are able to share their experience with us. An example of the network our organisation creates. We have established fruitful relationships with external partners in multiple fields, where we have been able to draw on their experience and resources. Not just in the sense of acquiring services and direct support, but also symbiotic partnerships where our team members have been granted internships which ultimately led to employment. We consider our work important based on a few main reasons: The Polish space sector is young and consist mainly of international organizations arriving in Poland, and ambitious Polish companies with little to no experience. We are amongst the few who will provide the influx of specialists; the workforce of tomorrow with the first-hand experience of managing and developing projects for space.
- Abstract document
- Manuscript document
IAC-15,E1,3,11,x31537.pdf (🔒 authorized access only).
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